Fuel feed means



Dec. 7, 1937. cso 2,101,536

- FUEL FEED MEANS Filed Aug. 19, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

Qeoge E. Ericson.

ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 7, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT-E OFFICE.)

FUEL FEED 1 MEANS George It. Ericson, St. Louis, Mo., assignor to CarterCarburetor Corporation, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of DelawareApplication August 19, 1936, Serial No. 9 ,791

4 Claims.

This invention relates to fuel feed devices and consists, particularly,in novel means for supplying combustible fuel to an intake passage froman adjacent tank.

Charge forming devices for small stationary engines are frequeiltlycarried on top of a fuel trolling needle valve several times before thetank is emptied.-

An object of the present invention'is to provide fuel "feed means forcharge forming devices of the above type constructed to overcome theabove-mentioned leaning out effect due to .empty- 'ing of the fuel tank.

Another object is to provide novel means for drawing fuel from a tank toa charge forming device under substantially uniform conditions.

These objects and other more detailed objects hereafter appearing areattained substantially by the structure illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of a device illustrating theinvention.

Figure 2 is a substantially diminished top view of the charge formingstructure.

1Figure3 is a view similar to Figure 1, but illustrating a modification.

Figure 4 is a detail view similar to Figures 1 and 3 but showing stillanother form..

In Figures 1 and 2 is shown a tank I for gasoline or other combustiblefuel and having a top portion 2 with a central aperture3. Secured inaperture 3 is a cup 4 having an overflow orifice 5. Mounted above cup 4'is a carburetor or charge forming device,'conveniently formed as a diecasting, including barrel 6 forming a venturi I, and an air inletportion 8 havingone or more holes 9 controlled by cup-like inlet valveIll. The opposite end of the carburetor is longitudinally split as at Iand provided with ears l2 for attachment to a tube or pipe I 3 leadingto the engine intake (not shown), pressure being supplied to the earsfor gripping tube i3 by a bolt l4.

: Depending from the carburetor barrel is the base structure [5 flangedas at It for attachment to the top of the tank immediately above cup 4and apertured as at IT and [8. The en.- larged lower portion of apertureI1 is threaded for receiving a'nipple l9 which extends downwardly intocup 4 beneath, the level of over-flow hole 5. The lower portion ofaperture l8 threadedly mounts an elongated tubular member '20 extendingthrough cup 4" and downwardly into 5 the tank I; Member 20 has anenlarged chamber M in its lower portion'communicating with the tankthrough an inlet orifice 22 'controlled by check '23. A chamber 24 in.lateral projecting structure 25 communicates with pumping chaml0 'ber2| through a hole 26 and with cup 4 through a tube 2! controlled byoutlet check 28, Chamber 24 is closed at the bottom by screw'plug'29.Loosely received in the longitudinal passage 30 extending throughtubular member 20, is. a rod 3| 16 carrying a piston 32 slidable inpassage I8 and ex--'. posed to pressure conditions within the mixingchamber 33 of the carburetor. Piston 32 is v urged upwardly by acompression spring 34.- At

the lower end of rod .3! is a secondpiston slidable in pumping chamber2| and constantly urged downwardly by a spring 36, which is somewhatstronger than spring 34 associated with the upper. piston. Rod 3| andpistons 32 and 35 thuslfl oat on springs34 and 36. 25

Carbureting devices, as described, are ordinarily used inconnection-with one cylinder; stationary engines, during the operationof which pressure conditions within the mixing chamber of the carburetorare subject to substantial, 30 rhythmic variation. Such. pulsationscause pis tons 32 and 35 and connecting rod (to oscillate,intermittingly drawing fuel through the check controlled inlet 22 anddischarging the same past outlet check 28 and through tube 27 into the35 over-flow chamber formed by a cup 4. The ca-' pacity of the pump issuflicient to maintain liq uid fuel in the over-flow chamber at thelevel of the over-flow orifice 5, irrespective of the depth of fuel inthe tank; so long as inlet 22 is im. 40 mersed. Thus liquid fuel will bedrawn through nipple -l8 and aperture ll under substantially uniformpressure conditions; regardless of the I height" of the fuel in thetank. proper and, accordlngly; the fuel control needle 36 and air valveI0 need not be readjusted after being once set piston 39 and plunger 41to oscillate, intermittingly drawing fuel past inlet check 46 into thepumping chamber 45 and expelling the same upwardly from the chamber 45past collar 49 and through passage 48 into the over-flow chamber. Duringupward movement of plunger 41, collar 49 rests against shoulder 5| inthe cap so as to substantially restrict downward movement of liquid frompassage 48 into the pumping chamber, thus permitting a supply of liquidto be drawn in from the main tank. During downward movement of theplunger, check ball. 46 seats and collar 49, which fits loosely withinthe cap member 44, is lifted by the pressure of fuel-in the pumpingchamber permitting the liquid to escape freely into tubular member 43and the over-flow chamber.

In Figure 4, the loose collar, as at 49in Figure 3, is omitted, andplunger 41 in tubular member 43 cooperates with inlet check 46 in cap 52to pump fuel into the over-flow chamber.

In Figures 3 and 4, as in the previous form, the capacity of the pump issuch as to maintain liquid fuel within the auxiliary chamber at thelevel of the over-flow orifice so that fuel will'be supplied throughinduction passage under substantially uniform conditions.

The specific form of the pistons 32, 35, 39 and 41 may be substantiallymodified, and the use of diaphragms or other equivalents of a piston iscontemplated. .In the present instance, the constant level fuel supplychamber 4 is mounted di rectly in the main fuel supply tank so that theuse of a large capacitypump with an over-flow passage 5, 42 is quitesatisfactory. The constant level chamber may be mounted outside of themain tank, where it is inconvenient to provide a return line, or theordinary float controlled inlet valve, which is conventional inautomotive carburetor constructions, may be used, if desired, to controlthe flow of fuel through the passages 21 or 43 from the pumping deviceto the constant level chamber.

The structure shown may be varied in these carried by said tankincluding a carburetor mix-- ture passage, a constant level chamberadjacent said passage, a suction fuel feed communication between saidpassage and said chamber, a pump having actuating means exposed topressure conditions in said mixture passage, a pumping chamber and acheck valve controlled inlet therefor near the bottom of said tank, anda duct connecting said constant level and pumping chambers.

2; The combination of elements specified in claim 1 in which saidcarburetor mixture passage is mounted on top of said tank and saidconstant level chamber is located inside said tank.

3. In combination, a fuel tank and structure carried adjacent the samecomprising an induction carbureting passage, 9. tubular member extendingfrom said passage downwardly into said tank, suction and pumpingchambers, respectively, at the top and bottom of said member, a plungerextending through said tubular member between said chambers, valve meansassociated with said pumping chamber whereby liquid is forced throughsaid tubular member upon pulsation of said plunger, a constant levelchamber adjacent said induction passage and constructed and arranged toreceive fuel from said tubular member, and a fuel feed conduit betweensaid constant level chamber and said induction passage.

4. In combination, a carburetor for support on a fuel tank and having aninductionpassage, tubular structure projecting from said carburetor forinsertion into the tank, a plunger extending loosely through saidstructure and exposed at one end to pressure pulsation in saidcarburetor, said tubular structure having a pumping chamber at itsopposite end with a check controlled'inlet, an outlet valve seat spacedfrom said inlet, a collar loosely surrounding said plunger andcooperable with said outlet seat to substantially resist passage of fuelthrough saidseat except outwardly of said pumping chamber, an over-flowchamber adjacent said carburetor and communicating with said pumpingchamber through said tubular member, and a suction fuel feedcommunication between said over-flow chamber and said induction passage.

GEORGE R. meson;

